Dead, not Gone
by Kaoupa
Summary: The Air Nomads had been destroyed by the Fire Nation, passing beyond the world. But even death was not enough to stop them from watching the world as the last of them found himself in it once more. Watching him, and hoping for his success.


A/N: I do not own Avatar: The Last Airbender.

It was strange, as they all woke up in the same place, to discover they had all passed beyond the boundaries of the world.

Just not in the way that they had hoped.

However, even as their homes and lives burned, they watched quietly, seeing those who fled and hid, hoping to escape their pursuers.

They watched as those who escaped stayed quiet, having to hide everything about themselves in order to remain safe from the enemy.

They watched, and wept, as their pursuers slowly, excruciatingly, dragged many of them out of hiding, or simply killed their new families till they gave up.

They saw the effects of the countless deaths, slowly spreading across the world.

They aided the victims in adjusting as they joined them in their peace - save for the ones who started and continued the cycle of death, for they were sent elsewhere before they came - even those from the enemy.

All life was sacred. While some refused to aid them, they were not blamed for this.

And they watched, surprised, as the last of their people finally awoke.

Several of them began to giggle and snicker upon the realization that he had developed a crush on the female waterbender (though the girl's mother had immediately begun trying to speak to her, telling her that he was quite the catch.)

They watched in amusement as he humiliated the arrogant prince, then in horror and relief as he went with him to save the innocent and swiftly escaped.

Though he could not feel them or see them, they were there when he discovered his family were no longer with him - and watched in joy as the two Tribesmen said they would be his new family.

While many were calm, some seethed in rage as the Fire Nation commander mocked him over their deaths, quietly embracing him as he watched in fury, trying to tell him some of them had made it away, despite knowing they would not be heard.

Though they too seethed when they saw the desecration of their home, they agreed that it was for the best, in the end. Though they could come back and rebuild in time, they needed it for the present.

As the Northerners fought the Fire Nation, they watched with pride as he fought the invaders, even when he thought that he might not be able to win.

As the ocean enveloped the invaders, they watched in horror as he committed the act, and found relief in the knowledge he was as horrified as they were… and watched sadly as he suffered in his nightmares.

Several snickered when they saw how bad he was at speaking to the Water Tribe girl he had fallen in love with; and while several of them were surprised at what happened soon after, some claimed that it was apparent to any who looked.

Of course, what _had_ happened in the dark was still disagreed on.

Though the earthbending girl infuriated many of them with how rude she was (and who on earth could blame him from jumping away from _a boulder about to crush him_?), it was interesting to see her slowly integrating into the group in her own way.

And as he meditated with the guru, they found, for the first time, a way to reach him with their minds. Though they were not sure if he knew, the vision of them he saw was _far_ more than a vision.

 _We believe in you, Aang. It is not your fault for what happened. We are still with you._

 _We will always be with you._

As the princess shot him down, they watched in horror.

 _Not yet. Not now. Too young, far too young. Not another._

Though he was briefly gone, they watched in relief as the waterbender brought him back to the world once more.

As he woke from his sleep, they watched him, hoping for his swift recovery.

As he once more found the good within the enemy, they smiled for his joy, in the hope that there might finally be peace one day soon.

Despite failing during the not-so-sneak attack, they continued to watch, knowing that the error was not through any fault or failure that he had made.

Though they did not trust the prince for aiding in the temporary death of their last member, they begrudgingly decided he would have to be trusted.

(Though they were not above haunting the scarred prince at night showing him what would happen if he betrayed them.)

(He would swear for years afterwards that the temple was haunting him, unaware of just how close to true it was.)

When they saw the original firebenders return to the world once more, they found the same peace in those flames as the Avatar and fallen prince.

And as the war came to an end, with the enemy willing to finally cease their attack, they watched with pride as the world began to rebuild, even without their involvement in the process.

And as he grew up, bringing their people to the world once more, they smiled at his success.

And, when he came to join them at last, they embraced him, tears falling from their eyes.

 _Hello, Aang. We've been waiting for you._


End file.
